Suslique 0 #1 June 15, 2015 Aren't we all responsible for our own health? Do you think that prescription laws violate your personal freedom? Should prescription laws be limited to psychotropic and narcotic drugs? If yes, how can you as a citizen change current situation? Share your thoughts please 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?' 'That is the only time a man can be brave.' George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
winsor 186 #2 June 15, 2015 SusliqueAren't we all responsible for our own health? Do you think that prescription laws violate your personal freedom? Should prescription laws be limited to psychotropic and narcotic drugs? If yes, how can you as a citizen change current situation? Share your thoughts please Having worked in the Pharmaceutical industry on and off for decades, I am convinced that the system is one founded on good intentions and modified to accommodate various conflicts of interest. Medicine in most of the Western world is pretty much a closed shop. The system of medical training contains of equal parts of hazing and indoctrination, and technical expertise that results from the process is largely a byproduct. Much of what was deemed true a century ago has been discredited, and we are routinely finding out that the guesses upon which medicine is based are subject to update. The free for all that existed before pure food and drug legislation came along left much to be desired. I'm a huge fan of knowing exactly what is in anything I consume, so that part of cGMPs is a good thing. The proscription against various psychoactive compounds is a mixed blessing at best.Having a population full of phencyclidine, methaqualone and the like sucks, but paying the social and economic price to lock up anyone given to such behavior is a poor solution. Winning the war on drugs can be a pyrrhic victory at best. Having said that, I recommend legalizing anything that is no worse than tobacco or alcohol (which is pretty much everything). If someone can smoke opium, they won't be killing themselves with krokodil. Of course, this is easy for me to say, since coffee is my limit - I avoid even OTC medication. BSBD, Winsor Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
normiss 622 #3 June 15, 2015 What is this "prescription law" you are referring to? If I don't want a prescription, I don't have it filled. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 1,623 #4 June 15, 2015 normissWhat is this "prescription law" you are referring to? If I don't want a prescription, I don't have it filled. But try to buy, say, a statin for cholesterol control without a prescription. Or a medication to deal with BPH because you have difficulty peeing. My wife the MD reckons that prescriptions should be required ONLY for narcotics and similar drugs. The rest is just maintaining a revenue stream for physicians.... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
normiss 622 #5 June 15, 2015 Right up until antibiotics stop working. Not everyone is a chemist. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 0 #6 June 15, 2015 kallend***What is this "prescription law" you are referring to? If I don't want a prescription, I don't have it filled. But try to buy, say, a statin for cholesterol control without a prescription. Or a medication to deal with BPH because you have difficulty peeing. My wife the MD reckons that prescriptions should be required ONLY for narcotics and similar drugs. The rest is just maintaining a revenue stream for physicians. Even more so, for shareholders and (preferred share-holding) senior execs of pharmaceutical companies. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 1,623 #7 June 15, 2015 normissRight up until antibiotics stop working. Not everyone is a chemist. You get most of your antibiotics from meat you eat.... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cvfd1399 0 #8 June 15, 2015 Yum beef!! http://m.imgur.com/QVQax2J Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
normiss 622 #9 June 15, 2015 Eating beef will not cure gonorrhea. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 1,623 #10 June 15, 2015 normissEating beef will not cure gonorrhea. I will have to accept your word on this one. I have no personal experience to go on.... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,400 #11 June 15, 2015 >Aren't we all responsible for our own health? Yes. However: -Most people are unaware (and are not willing to become aware) of the sort of drug interactions that could easily kill you. And that's not just a "idiots can't read the label" sort of thing - that's something that takes years to learn. (case 1) -Most people, left to their own devices, would get their medications completely wrong; they would self-diagnose inaccurately, take drugs accordingly, and via the placebo effect decide that they were doing better overall. Needless to say that would lead to a worse outcome. (case 1) -People would absolutely overprescribe antibiotics, evinced by the large number of people who come into the ER with the sniffles and and want antibiotics (case 2) -Parents are going to make poor decisions about their children's medical care if they are able to self-prescribe (case 2) (Case 1 - someone harming themselves; case 2 - someone harming someone else) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
normiss 622 #12 June 15, 2015 Nor do I, but why ignore science? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Suslique 0 #13 June 15, 2015 [B]winsor Thanks, interesting perspective from an insider. What do you think of vaccines? Billvon The thing is, and its rather paradoxical, that in the countries where you can freely buy whatever you want from a pharmacy (my motherland yohoho) people still visit doctors when they are seriously sick. Majority is too cautious to use antibiotics, And I have never ever heard of anyone dying because of drug incomparability. Now on other hand, I have couple of friends who live in US and one of them had to wait 6 months to get prescription for antifungal. She didn't get it in the end, I just bought it and sent it to her via dhl (a bit of a hassle I had to ask my sister who is a dermatologist to virtually consult her and write a prescription for US customs). 6 months with candidosis is hell. And it all cleared up after 1 capsule of flucanozole. People come home for vacation, stock up with all the drugs they can't get freely in US and go back:) But the question stands, people can make poor choices and harm themselves and their kids on daily basis (the most horrendous one is nutrition i think) why does government need to control only drug spect? I mean people fight to get a right to know what they are eating and putting on their skin (cosmetics regulation in US is non existent basically, look up your toothpaste on skindeep database and see if it wants to kill you) and government doesn't want to get involved but when it comes to drugs they are loving and caring all of a sudden? What do you think of this moment? 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?' 'That is the only time a man can be brave.' George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Suslique 0 #14 June 15, 2015 I've heard of those without an insurance buying and using fish antibiotics to cure bronchitis... 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?' 'That is the only time a man can be brave.' George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
normiss 622 #15 June 15, 2015 "incomparability" - I don't think that word means what you think it does. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Suslique 0 #16 June 15, 2015 That's my phone:) incompatibility. I do those mistakes too English is my 3rd language, when I'm out of English speaking country my brain switches it off. Even though 90% of what I read is in English. 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?' 'That is the only time a man can be brave.' George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
normiss 622 #17 June 15, 2015 You're doing much better than I am if you can process this forum on a cell phone. I don't even try that! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
normiss 622 #18 June 15, 2015 How's that working for bloodstream infections? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,400 #19 June 15, 2015 >Majority is too cautious to use antibiotics When Amy worked in an urgent care facility here she saw people all the time who came in wanting antibiotics for their kids, because they had a sore throat or a fever. In the US we spend about $20 billion a year dealing with the problems caused by antibiotic overuse - and that's with doctors working as "gatekeepers" to keep the above-mentioned parents from getting antibiotics when they don't need them. (And as someone else pointed out, overuse in livestock is an even bigger problem.) >But the question stands, people can make poor choices and harm themselves and >their kids on daily basis (the most horrendous one is nutrition i think) why does >government need to control only drug spect? Well, they don't. The government here will try to protect kids from parents who abuse them (including starving them) as well as pass laws that protect them from accidents (car seats and the like) and other forms of substance abuse (alcohol and tobacco.) Needless to say they often go too far, but the principle that the government has a wider role in protecting children than in protecting adults is both well-established and well-demonstrated. >I mean people fight to get a right to know what they are eating and putting on their >skin (cosmetics regulation in US is non existent basically, look up your toothpaste on >skindeep database and see if it wants to kill you) and government doesn't want to get >involved . . . . I'd say they have gotten involved, with mandatory ingredient labeling requirement and requirements for accurate descriptions of risks and benefits for OTC drugs (including toothpaste.) Again, they sometimes go too far there, but it's not like they "don't care" about anything but prescription drugs. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Suslique 0 #20 June 15, 2015 Interesting points! Thanks! 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?' 'That is the only time a man can be brave.' George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
okalb 78 #21 June 15, 2015 kallendMy wife the MD reckons that prescriptions should be required ONLY for narcotics and similar drugs. The rest is just maintaining a revenue stream for physicians. I was born with Psoriasis. I have used certain topical creams and lotions for as long as I can remember. Every time I need a renewal, the Dermatologist will not renew the script without me coming in for a visit. This is not just my current Dermo, but every one I have ever had (many over the years). It is absurd that I have used the same stuff for over 10 years and yet they will not renew without a checkup. It is an auto-immune condition, they know I have it, they know the topicals that I have used and what they do. There is absolutely no reason for me to come in there for a visit unless I have some new development and yet, there I go taking time off of work to make go see the doc just to get a script. There is no question, that is just about revenue for the Doc.Time flies like an arrow....fruit flies like a banana Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest #22 June 15, 2015 okalb***My wife the MD reckons that prescriptions should be required ONLY for narcotics and similar drugs. The rest is just maintaining a revenue stream for physicians. I was born with Psoriasis. I have used certain topical creams and lotions for as long as I can remember. Every time I need a renewal, the Dermatologist will not renew the script without me coming in for a visit. This is not just my current Dermo, but every one I have ever had (many over the years). It is absurd that I have used the same stuff for over 10 years and yet they will not renew without a checkup. It is an auto-immune condition, they know I have it, they know the topicals that I have used and what they do. There is absolutely no reason for me to come in there for a visit unless I have some new development and yet, there I go taking time off of work to make go see the doc just to get a script. There is no question, that is just about revenue for the Doc. You're forgetting something important - liability. It's your doctor's chop that's going on the prescription form. Were I a medical professional, due diligence would be to schedule periodic revisits. Some medications do lose their effectiveness over time, for example. Naturally I know nothing of your case, and I had the same problem trying to get refills when I was overseas, but one time I lucked out and had a doc in Kuwait give me a year's worth of a med because he knew I was going to Djibouti and couldn't get it there. Just my $.02... mh ."The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cvfd1399 0 #23 June 15, 2015 Seconded. I especially hate the come in for 5 seconds pre procedure so I can make a BMW payment visits. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cvfd1399 0 #24 June 15, 2015 markharju******My wife the MD reckons that prescriptions should be required ONLY for narcotics and similar drugs. The rest is just maintaining a revenue stream for physicians. I was born with Psoriasis. I have used certain topical creams and lotions for as long as I can remember. Every time I need a renewal, the Dermatologist will not renew the script without me coming in for a visit. This is not just my current Dermo, but every one I have ever had (many over the years). It is absurd that I have used the same stuff for over 10 years and yet they will not renew without a checkup. It is an auto-immune condition, they know I have it, they know the topicals that I have used and what they do. There is absolutely no reason for me to come in there for a visit unless I have some new development and yet, there I go taking time off of work to make go see the doc just to get a script. There is no question, that is just about revenue for the Doc. You're forgetting something important - liability. It's your doctor's chop that's going on the prescription form. Were I a medical professional, due diligence would be to schedule periodic revisits. Some medications do lose their effectiveness over time, for example. Naturally I know nothing of your case, and I had the same problem trying to get refills when I was overseas, but one time I lucked out and had a doc in Kuwait give me a year's worth of a med because he knew I was going to Djibouti and couldn't get it there. Just my $.02... mh . Some times that comes into play, and most of the time it doesn't. There isn't much liability for things like heartburn and allergy meds, and if it stops working you make an apt and get it fixed, but you might never need it to be done. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Suslique 0 #25 June 15, 2015 my macbook gave me severe atopic dermatitis (I'm wearing gloves and using trackball right now how sad is this?) so my nerd phone is my window to the internetz :D normiss no idea :) 'Can a man still be brave if he's afraid?' 'That is the only time a man can be brave.' George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
